The God of No

One of the turn offs non-believers have for regarding God is that His rules are too strict, too old fashion.    No to drinking, drugs, no sex before marriage.  No to swearing, no to gossiping, no to lying, stealing, cheating.  

To many people follow the guide of "If it feels good then do it" and "If it makes you happy then do it" or "Live for today".  They push God and all His "No's" aside without a second thought.

This is not the proper way to view God.  He is not a God of No, He is a God of Love.  He loves us and wants what is best for us.  He knows that keeping us safe and healthy and close to Him will bring us true joy and happiness regardless of life's circumstances.

God has given us free will.  That means we are the ones empowered to say "No".  We can choose freely to tell God "NO" at any time and we are free to go against any of His silly rules.

However, we must realize that His "Rules" and His "No's" are His way of guiding us away from evil and wrongdoing so that we can be healthy and happy.  

For example.  One of His silly rules is "NO" to sex before or without marriage.  What a kill joy! And we can exercise our free will and say "NO" to this rule.  But look at what has happened to so many of us that have ignored this rule.  Teen pregnancy, abortions, disease, single motherhood, poverty, a and abuse prevail in a world of sex before / without marriage.

Another example:  God has a rule about NO to  getting high  and drunk.  He knows these are destructive behaviors leading to poor health, disease, broken families / relationships and abuse.

And another example:  God has a rule about NO to gossip and lies.  What would the news be without those two things??!!  What would we talk about in regards to celebrities and the people at work or in school?  We love juicy gossip and it doesn't really matter if it is true or not.  But people are hurt by this.  Some are so hurt to the point of harming their mental health and well being.  It may even lead to bullying which we know has been linked to suicide among teens.

Think about this.  Our parents love us and how often do they say "No"?  It is not to kill our fun or make us social outcasts.  They say NO to guide us so we can become healthy and independent, functioning, adults.

God's love for us is even greater than our parent's.  And like our parent's rules,  His rules are to guide and protect us.  He knows what we are capable of and how detrimental our choices can be.  So to protect us from the evils of this world He gives us these rules.  It is up to us to say yes----or no, and then accept the consequences of our choices as it impacts our health and happiness and those around us. 

And as we cite all the "NO" rules from God, 

we forget His greatest "YES".   

YES---He loves and forgives us

Remember, despite all the times we deny God and His rules, God sent Jesus to die for US.  It was His blood only that could clean up the mess we make in our lives because of all the times we have said NO to Him.  

Even as it happened over 2000 years ago, as He died on the cross, Jesus was looking into the future at YOU and your life and was thinking of YOU as He gave up His life for your sins.  

Knowing He died for YOU, how can you not think He always has YOUR best interests in His heart, even when He is saying No?